CRITIC Business Management in Quran

8/14/2019 CRITIC Business Management in Quran

http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/critic-business-management-in-quran 1/7

ISLAMIC CONCEPT OF MANAGEMENT1

anagement today is defined as“getting things done throughothers.” Following this concept,a Manager is now understood asthe person who works through

others. A good manager, therefore, is aperson who not only knows what is to bedone but exactly how to get it done. TheHoly Quran confirms:

[43:32] “…We raise some ofthem above others in ranks,so that some may commandw o r k f r o m o t h e r s . . . ”

This Ayat reveals in a nutshell as to why Godraised some people over others in ranks,that being, that they can get work done fromthem. This Ayat (43:32) encompasses theentire philosophy and wisdom of modernmanagement. It emphasizes, in essence, thecreation of appropriate hierarchies and thedivision of responsibilities subject toindividual capabilities. It basically implies

Toyota in particular owe their phenomenal success to adherence to certain golden principles of management, which includes: elimination of wastage/optimum capacity utilization, struggle for continuousimprovement (Jihad), JIT, Visual Control, and TQM, to name a few—all which is explicitly advertised bythe Holy Quran since 1400+ years. The Holy Quran even laid down the institutional framework forachieving these principles. What now remains desired is a sincere study of it and its practicalimplementation. This article discusses only a few of these golden principles.

VIEWPOINT

Business Managem

Quranas t aught by

the

BY OMAR JAVAID

M“This Ayat (43:32) encompasses theentire philosophy and wisdom of moder n management. It emphasizes ,in essence , t he c rea t ion o f appropriate hierarchies and thedivision of responsibilities subject toindividual capabilities .”

part1

CRITIC Magazine | January ‘08 4



VIEWPOINT

the creation of organizational charts fromthe top management to the lowermanagement.

It basically implies the creation of organizational charts from the topmanagement to the lower management.“…we raise some of them above others inranks, so that some may command workfrom others….”

The Holy Quran has also laid down theinstitutional framework for putting thisgolden rule into practice:

1.Obedience and Respect for Authority;

2.Principles of Equal Opportunities; and

3.Motivation and Commitment.

OBEDIENCE AND RESPECT FORAUTHORITY

Obedience and respect for authority is thebasic fundamental requisite for taking workfrom others and getting it done. Workingthrough people actually presupposes thewillingness of people to obey. It is thereforenecessary for those people who are giventhe job to complete a task to obey all legaland reasonable orders and perform itresponsibly, as Holy Quran instructs:

[4:59] “Obey Allah and HisMessenger and those in positionof authori ty among you.”

This Ayat is a commandment and not a plea.To be a good Muslim, it is incumbent uponthe believer to observe the ruling withwillingness and honesty. When this spirit of voluntary obedience is instilled in the mindof an employee, the scope of the hierarchyas envisaged by the Ayat is strengthened[43:32]. Needless to say, without the spiritof voluntary obedience among those whowork, the creation of hierarchy will not serveany purpose.

JOINT CONSULTATION & TEAMWORK

The modern world realized the importanceof joint consultation (Shura) and team-workwhen the Japanese based its managementstyle on it and proved to the world of itseffectiveness.

The Holy Quran advocates for this concept:

[42:83] “...and those who dotheir work through mutualconsultation.”

[3:159] “…pass over (theirfaults), and ask for (God's)forgiveness for them; andconsult them in affairs (ofmoment). Then, when you havetaken a decision put your trustin God, for God loves thosewho put their trust (in Him).”

PRINCIPLE OF EQUALOPPORTUNITIES

The principle of equal opportunitiespostulate that all members of an organizationshall have equal and fair chances to grow,contribute, and be rewarded accordingly.

The Holy Quran emphasis this golden rule:

[49:13] “O people We created

you from a single male andfemale couple and then dividedyou in nations and tribes sothat you may recognize oneanother. “Verily the mosthonorable among you in thesight of Allah is he who ismost r i gh t eous o f you .”

Our beloved Prophet Muhammad (P)expounded the verse for us on the occasionof Hajat-ul-Widaa, in the following words:

“In the light of this Quranicv e r s e n o A r a b h a s a n ysuperiority over a non-Arabnor does any non-Arab have anysuperiority over an Arab.Neither black is superior towhite nor white is superior toblack. Of course, if there isany criterion of superiorityand respectability in the sighto f A l l a h , i t i s Ta q w a(righteousness).”

These words suggest that despite the factthat we are all equal, human beings canexcel over one another in certain aspects of life. One such aspect could be in terms of

righteousness.

There can be no better pattern for equalopportunities than the one spelled out bythe above Quranic Ayat. In the realm of management, it would mean that the criteriafor entitlement to any benefit, reward,position, or status shall be such that any onehaving requisite qualifications andexperience should have equal opportunityto achieve it. This will obviously go a longway towards maintain the requisite degreeof harmony in the work environmentconducive to the smooth working of themanagement process.

MOTIVATION & COMMITMEN

Making people what they are supposed todo requires a certain degree of commitmentwhich can only be achieve throughmotivation. It is an established fact that theway a Manager behaves or deals with thesubordinates determines the level andvitality of their motivation and commitmentto a great extent.

The Holy Quran too speaks about this goldenrule:

[3:159] “(telling the Prophet)If you had been stern and fierceof heart they (the companionsand followers) would havedisappeared from around you.S o p a r d o n t h e m a n d a s kforgiveness for them and consultthem in the conduct of affairs”

This beautiful ayat emphasizes upon twoaspects: one, that compassionate andsympathetic behavior towards companionsand followers, and second, the adoption of participatory approach when dealing withthem i.e. consulting them, is the mosteffective way of management. If this goldenrule is not observed then “they will disappearfrom you” i.e. they won’t pay attention norany interest in you or what your work entails.

Both these golden rules play vital role in themotivation of subordinates and inculcating

in them the spirit of commitment andpassion for work.

THE CORNERSTONE OF TOYOTASUCCES: ELIMINATION OF WAST

Wastage—either in terms of: material,human capital, energy, machine utilization,or processing time, creates inefficienciesresulting in the increase of costs andconsequent decrease in profits.

The Holy Quran has spoken against wastage

Continuous and aggressive pursuit of

wastage elimination led Toyota tobecome one of the most efficientmanufacturing organizations in theworld. The Holy Quran had alreadyspoken against wastage and lavishexpenditures, It says: (17:26-27, 7:31)“…waste not in the manner of aspendthrift.”

CRITIC Magazine | January ‘0848



and lavish expenditures in sternest of words:

[17:26] “And render to thekindred their due rights, as(also) to those in want, andto the wayfarer. But waste not(your wealth, time, health,talents, opportunities etc) inthe manner of a spendthrift.”

[17:27] “For the wasteful arethe brothers of Satan; andSatan is ungrateful to hisLord.”

[7:31] “O Children of Adam!wear your beautiful apparel atevery time and place of prayer:eat and drink: But waste notby excess, for Allah lovethnot the wasters.”

It was Toyota who first understood andimplemented this golden rule in business,not the Muslims. Their success is thus basedon two principles:

1. Complete Elimination of Wastage; and2. Equal Level of Respect for All

Continuous and aggressive pursuit of wastage elimination led Toyota to becomeone of the most efficient manufacturingorganizations in the world. The company isnow able to produce the best quality of automotive products at the least possiblecost while maintaining the highest pay-scalefor its employees. Their success-story has

inspired many companies throughout theglobe, including those in Pakistan andadoption of these principles andmethodologies in these companiesconcerning continuous elimination of wasteis already underway. Jeffery K Liker in hisbook The Toyota Way has described thatToyota production system today comprisesof 14 principles that have evolved as a resultof continues pursuit of Toyota since the verybeginning. Some of these processes aretechnically known as Kaizen, JIT, and 5-S.

KAIZEN: THE MANAGEMENT JIHADAGAINST INEFFICIENCY

Kaizen is a Japanese word meaningcontinuous improvement. For Toyota, Kaizenis a means to strive and struggle to achievetheir golden rule of “elimination of waste.”To implement Kaizen, the managementcontinuously seeks to identify areas wherewastage is being done. Once identified, theythen set out to analyze the problem, suggesta solution, plan its implementation,implement it, and finally reviews the changefor success or failure (PDCA cycle). This isnot easy as implementation of Kaizen

sometimes lead to minor or major changesin the system which is not always welcomed,and are resisted by the stakeholders of thestatus quo environment. Therefore, themanagement then also has to struggleagainst the resistance and make the changeacceptable by different means.

A Muslim must also strive to eliminate anywastage around him, at home, workplace,or in society even when faced withresistance. A very common example wouldbe to control the use of water, food, andelectricity according to the needs. Wastageof resources such as material in theworkplace, man-hours, machine-hours,human potential, and time should also beminimized. While 100% elimination is notpossible we should still try to get as close toit as possible, and this can only be achievedthrough continuous struggle (Jihad). Muslimswould find this easier to do than non-Muslims because they have been explicitlyinstructed by the Holy Quran. Continuousstriving is the only way available to achieveminimum possible wastage or maximumpossible efficiency, which is nothing but Jihadin Arabic.

The Holy Quran confirms this fact:

[5:35] “You who believe! Havefear of Allah and seek themeans of drawing near to Him,and strive in His Way, so thath o p e f u l l y y o u w i l l b esuccessful. ”

JUST-IN-TIME (JIT) SYSTEM FORINVENTORY MANAGEMENT

The concept of Just-in-Time which has beeninvented by Toyota has revolutionized theInventory Management Systems in themanufacturing organizations throughout theworld. It is based on the golden principle of keeping only that much amount of inventorythat is needed and that too in continuousmovement in order to avoid in-process bufferinventory as much as possible until it iscompletely transformed into the finishedgood.

A Muslim should be a born JIT expert. TheHoly Quran instructs him in 2:219 that heshould spend on himself only as much as heneeds and to give away the excess in theway of Allah.

[2:219] “… They ask thee howmuch they are to spend in theway of Allah; Say: ‘What isbeyond your needs.’”

[10:58] “The men on the heightswill call to certain men whom

A Muslim must also strive to eliminateany wastage around him, at home,workplace, or in society even whenfaced with r esistance. A very commonexample would be to contr ol the useof water, food, and electricityaccording to the needs. Wastage of resources such as material in theworkplace, man-hours, machine-hours, human potential, and timeshould also be minimized.

The concept of Just-in-Time hasrevolu t ion ized the InventoryManagement Systems in themanufac tu r ing o rgan iza t ionsthr oughout the world. It is based onthe golden principle of keeping onlythat much amount of inventory thatis needed and that too in continuousmovement in order to avoid in-process buffer inventory as much aspossible until it is completelytransformed into the finished good.The Holy Qur an s poke about J IT in2:219, 9:34, 10:58 “…spend what isbeyond your needs (i.e. do not hoar d)”

In order to solve any problem, themanager or supervisor at Toyota isobligated to go and see for himself the issue, analyze it, and takecorrective actions. Second handinformation is simply not accepted.This fundamental pr inciple of businessmanagement is also mentioned in theHoly Quran (17:36) “You shall notaccept any information unless youver ify it for yourself…”




VIEWPOINT

they will know from their marks,saying: “Of what profit to you

were your hoards and yourarrogant ways?”

One might argue that the context of thisayat is different. Factually, a Muslim shouldunderstand that the Holy Quran lays downgolden rules which are all applicableuniversally for all times in all situations. Whatthe Holy Quran intends as a whole is tocreate a specific mindset, or a worldview.Once, this mindset or the worldview iscreated, these rules automatically becomea part of a lifestyle and ceases to be a chore.Thus a Muslim businessman will neveraccumulate large amount of inventories asprescribed by the “economics of scale”philosophy because it will go against hisingrained core beliefs. He will know thataccumulation of inventories (wealth) to gaineconomic benefits by deterring the forcesof demand and supply is discouraged by theHoly Quran in 9:34, and so will refrain fromdoing such a thing.

[9:34] “O ye who believe! …those who bury gold and silverand spend it not in the way ofAllah, announce unto them am o s t g r i e v o u s p e n a l t y. ”

JIT was pioneered by Toyota and it is animportant part of Toyota Production System(TPS). Toyota believed that accumulation of inventory of any kind, be beginning, in-process, or finished goods, is a kind of wastage in the form of Material Holding Costwhich is being added during the timematerial is sitting idle within the premisesof the manufacturing facility.

GO & SEE FOR YOURSELF (VISUAL

CONTROL)Toyota calls it Genchi Gembitsu 2. It worksthis way: in order to solve any problem, themanager or supervisor at Toyota is obligatedto go and see for himself the issue, analyzeit, and take corrective actions. Second handinformation is simply not accepted becauseit is considered to be unreliable, or at leastnot 100% correct. It is a proven fact thatwhen information passes along the chainfrom people to people, a degree of distortionand/or misinterpretation takes place. Thisdistortion is due to the differences we havein our perceptions, semantics, state of minds,and basic psychology etc. These distortionscan easily lead to misunderstandings aboutthe situation or problem and hence cangreatly reduce the quality of solutionpresented. Thus, in order to minimize oreliminate this distortion, it is utmostnecessary that that the information shouldbe first-hand as much as it can be possible.In the Chapter 12 of Jeffery K Liker’s book‘The Toyota Way’, it is explained how thecompany has developed the mechanisms toget the most accurate and first-handinformation without wastage of time andmoney.

This golden rule is amply mentioned in the

Holy Quran.

[17:36] “You shall not acceptany information, unless youverify it for yourself. I havegiven you the hearing, theeyesight, and the brain, andyou are responsible for usingthem.”

The essence of management is all abouthandling information and making the rightdecisions based on it. A Muslim should knowthat the Holy Quran commands him (not

asks him) to be very cautious about theinformation he receives and to verify it forits accuracy before making any decision or

judgment or opinion. Although this mayapparently seem to involve a lot of work andtime but in reality it actually saves a hugeabout of time, energy, and money in thelong run that might be wasted if the decisionstaken turn out to be wrong and damaging.However, for minor day-to-day issues,systems can be designed to ensure accurateflow of information from department todepartments and from persons to persons 3

5-S

5-S is a set of 5 Japanese terminologies, eachone of them stating a very practical andimportant golden principle. Almost allJapanese firms follow these principles inorder to achieve maximum amount of efficiency in their work. A brief detail of eachfollows:

SEIRI

The first step of the ‘5-S’ process, Seiri, refersto the act of discarding all unwanted,unnecessary, and unrelated materials fromany place of concern. It could be theworkplace or home or even a town. The ideais to ensure that everything left is of useonly. Even the number of necessary itemsmust be kept to its absolute minimum.

This principle should be ingrained in themindset of a true Muslim. The Holy Quran

instructs:[2:219] “… They ask thee howmuch they are to spend in theway of Allah; Say: ‘What isbeyond your needs.’”

The added advantages of discardingunnecessary materials from any place is thatit simplifies task, makes effective use of space, and careful purchase of items needed.It also helps the person to increase hisefficiency at home and at work for he musthandle items and maintain them withminimum wastage of time and energy. TheHoly Quran mentions this in 17:27 and 7:31.

SEITON

A mindset of a Muslim evolves after learning,implementing, and benefiting from ‘Seiri’towards ‘Seiton,’ or orderliness, which is allabout efficiency. This golden principle relateswith putting everything in an assigned placeso that it can be accessed or retrieved quickly,as well as returned to that same placewithout delays. The logic is that if everyonehas quick access to an item or material,workflow becomes efficient and less time is

Japanese Term English Equivalent Meaning in JapaneseContext

Seiri

Seiton

Seiso

Seiketsu

Shitsuke

Tidiness

Orderliness

Cleanliness

Standardization

Discipline

Dispose of all unrelated anduseless materials and items

Set everything in proper placefor quick retrieval and storage

Clean the workplace; everyoneshould be a janitor

Standardize the way of maintaining cleanliness

Practice ‘5-S’ daily—make it away of life; this also means

‘commitment’

SET OF 5-S TERMINOLOGIES




waste in locating it.

SEISO

Everyone should be a janitor. Seiso consistsof cleaning up the workplace and giving it a‘shine.’ Cleaning must be done by everyonein the organization, from operators tomanagers. It would be a good and a practicalidea to have certain areas of the workplaceassigned to different persons or group of people for cleaning purpose. No area shouldbe left unclean. Everyone should see theworkplace through the eyes of a visitor—always thinking whether it is clean enoughto make a good impression or not.

Seiso cannot be achieved without havingmutual respect for everyone and anatmosphere of brotherhood. Furthermore,it also requires an intrinsic desire andmotivation for cleanliness.

The Holy Quran understands the importanceof cleanliness and instructs its believers tokeep themselves clean at all times, and setsabout to describe how this can best beachieved. The entire system of Salat is aperfect example and an exercise to ensurethat Muslims obey and follow this goldenrule at least five times a day, every day,throughout their lives.

A Muslim offers his Salat in a Masjid behindan Imam. He first performs ablution whichnot only purifies him physically but alsospiritually. He then stands shoulder-to-shoulder with his brothers irrespective of

any social and economic status behind anImam, and follows his instructions. Similarshould be the scenario in a workplace aswell where everyone should feel responsibleto work passionately (worship in Salat),

respect each other (stand shoulder-to-shoulder), keep his surroundings clean(ablution and cleanliness of Masjid), andfollow the instructions of their superiors(Imam) without any resistance or laziness.Needless to say, it is a perfect system.

SEIKETSU

The fourth step of 5-S is Seiketsu which moreor less translates into ‘standardized clean-up.’ What it consists of is definition of standards against which people mustmeasure and maintain cleanliness. Seiketsuencompasses both personal andenvironmental cleanliness. People mustpractice Seiketsu starting with their personaltidiness to keep themselves motivated andmentally fresh. Visual management is animportant ingredient of Seiketsu.

The Holy Quran also provides us with astandardized yet very comprehensive set of rules to obtain and maintain cleanliness atall physical, emotional, intellectual, andspiritual levels. One such standard is thefive-time obligatory Salat which is alsoconsidered as the Pillar of Islam. Another isablution, the standards of which are clearlystated in Islamic Fiqh. How the state of intellectual and spiritual cleanliness isachieved and maintained is a verycomprehensive subject in Islam, and outsidethe scope of this article. Those interestedmust read ‘Tazkia-e-Nafs’ (Purification of Self) by Molana Ameen Ahsan Islahi

SHITSUKU

The last step of 5-S is Shitsuke which literallymeans ‘Discipline.’ This golden rule denotescommitment to maintain orderliness and topractice the first 4 S’s as a way of life. The

emphasis of Shitsuke is on the eliminationof bad habits and constant practice of goodones. Once a person achieves the state of Shitsuke, cleanliness and orderliness is thenvoluntarily and at times subconsciouslyobserved at all time, without the need of

reminders or motivation.Shitsuke is the most evolved state of mindthat incorporates all the previous goldenrules. It is too obvious for any rational mindto conclude how natural it should be for atrue Muslim to have this state of mind.

OPTIMUM CAPACITY UTILIZATIO

The following ayats from the Holy Quranreveals another golden rule that a Muslimbusinessman should learn from and practicein his daily life.

[2:233] “… No soul shall havea burden laid on it greaterthan it can bear…”

[2:286] “On no soul doth Allahplace a burden greater than itcan bear… (Pray) Our Lord! Laynot on us a burden greater thanwe have strength to bear.”

This principle is emphasizing on the fact thatphysical, emotional, and intellectual capacityof an individual is limited and not exhaustive.Additionally, since every person is unique inhis talents and temperament, and in hisskills, it is important not to burden someonewith a task that is beyond his scope to dealwith it. This is an important principle of modern business management.

If we add another ayat to the abovementioned ones, we will come across a setof very comprehensive principles for businessmanagement and personal life.

[55:7-9] “And the Firmamenthas He raised high, and He hasset up the Balance (of Justice),In order that ye may not

These ayat 2 :233 , 2 :286 emphasizing on the fact that phyemotional, and intellectual capacan individual is limited and exhaustive. Additionally, since eperson is unique in his talentstemperament, and in his skills, impor tant not to burden someonea task that is beyond his scope towith it.




transgress (due) balance. Soestablish weight with justiceand fall not short in thebalance.”

[17:27] “ For the wasteful arethe brothers of Satan; and Satan is ungrateful to hisLord.”

[7:31] “O Children of Adam!wear your beautiful apparel atevery time and place of prayer:eat and drink: But waste notby excess, for Allah lovethnot the wasters.”

The principles mentioned in 2:286, 55:7-9,17:27, 7:31 mean:

1. Do not over-burden any resource, whetherit is a machine or an employee;

2.Do not under-load any machine oremployee; and

3. Balance out the workload onto differentmachines or on different employees sothat none of them is over-burdened orunder-loaded with regards to theirrespective capacities.

For Toyota 4, these three principles are calledMuri, Mura and Muda categorized under asingle principle called Heijunka, which meansto level out the workload. Toyota Company

practices these principles almost religiously 5.

If principle (1) is not implemented and themachines are overloaded, then a lot of work-in-process inventory may pile up which willlead to added expenses in terms of materialhandling and holding cost. If the employeesare overloaded, they may feel frustrated,de-motivated, and get tired very quickly,making them inefficient and prone tomistakes which will lead to wastage of timeand money.

If principle (2) is not implemented and themachines or employees are under-utilized,the company will face an obvious wastagein the form of fixed overheads. Besides, idleemployees are bored employees and highlyde-motivated to carry out even the workwhich is assigned to them.

If principle (3) is not implemented and someemployees are over-burdened while the

others are sitting in idleness, it will not onlycreate a feeling of injustice in the minds of those employees working but a sense of discrimination coupled with frustration andanger which can easily ignite into a possibleconflict. (I have witnessed this for myself).This is just a preview or an insight into thevast field and scope of the subject at hand.These golden principles are not merely forbusiness management but for every personfrom every walk of life and profession. It isin fact a system of life as a whole (Deen).

THE PHILOSOPHY BEHIND QUALITY

MANAGEMENT SYSTEMA business cannot flourish in the long run if it doesn’t give its customer what it promisesto. Being a customer it is easy to understandthis but for a business it is usually not. Themain focus of a businessman is to makeprofits and not necessarily to satisfy thecustomer. It would not be wrong to say thatthe only time the businessman realizes thatcustomer satisfaction is important is whenhe understand that this is directly relatedwith his profitability margins.

This has been realized the hard way by the

western organizations that customersatisfaction is vital for their survival andgrowth. So, in order to achieve the highestlevels of customer satisfaction, they haveput in considerable amount of research onthe concept what is now known as QualityManagement Systems including its varioustools and methodologies such as the Six-Sigma and TQM.

The West after years of experimentation andfailures has now found out this golden rule,the same golden rule which was mentionedin the Holy Quran.

The Holy Quran commands:

[6:152] “And come not nigh tothe orphan's property, exceptto improve it, until he attainthe age of full strength; givemeasure and weight with (full)justice;- no burden do We placeon any soul, but that which itcan bear;- whenever ye speak,speak justly, even if a nearrelative is concerned; andfulfill the covenant of Allah.Thus doth He command you thatye may remember. “

[7:85] “...Give just measureand weight, nor withhold fromthe people the things that aretheir due; and do no mischiefon the earth after it has beenset in order: that will be bestfor you, if ye have Faith.”

[11:84-85] "O my people!Worship Allah. Ye have no othergod but Him. And give not shortmeasure or weight: I see youin prosperity, but I fear foryou the penalty of a day that

will compass (you) all round."And O my people! give justmeasure and weight, nor withholdfrom the people the things thatare their due: commit not evilin the land with intent to domischief.”

[17:35] “Give full measurewhen ye measure, and weigh witha balance that is straight:that is the most fitting andthe most advantageous in thefinal determination.”

The western organizations finallyr ealized that customer sat isfactionis vital for their sur vival and growth.This gave birth to the concept knownas Quality Management Systemsincluding all its various tools andmethodologies such as the Six-Sigmaand TQM which are solely focusedtowar ds customer satisfaction.. TheHoly Quran spoke about QualityManagement Systems, and ismentioned in 6:152, 7:85, 11:84-85,17:35, 26:181-182, 55:7-9, 83:1-3“…give full measure and weight; …do

not withhold from people (includingcustomers) the things that ar e theirdue; …woe to those who deal infraud…”

ACTION BOX

1. Study Quran: Be analytical. Connect thedots—find answers to your daily needs. StudyQuran from the perspective of your profession.

2. Struggle—Jihad : Strive for continuousimprovement of yourself and your business

along with the society and people who youknow. Promote virtue. Suppress Vice.

3. Eliminate Wastage —of time, of talents, of material, of wealth, of health, of opportunitiesetc. Make effective and efficient use of whatever resources you have.

4. Do Business For the Service of Society:Address their needs. Meet their expectations.Make your product/service affordable. Don’ttake exorbitant profits. Contribute towardsImprovement of society.

5. Don’t Cheat: Ensure full weight and measure.Give them exactly what you promise. Putcustomers first before profits.

VIEWPOINT




[26:181-182] "Give justmeasure, and cause no loss (toothers by fraud). And weighwith scales true and upright.”

[55:7-9] “And the Firmamenthas He raised high, and He hasset up the Balance (of Justice),In order that ye may nottransgress (due) balance. Soestablish weight with justiceand fall not short in thebalance.”

[83:1-3] “Woe to those thatdeal in fraud,- Those who, whenthey have to receive by measurefrom men, exact full measure,But when they have to give bymeasure or weight to men, giveless than due. Do they notthink that they will be calledto account?”

For a Muslim businessman, there is noalternative but to satisfy his customer, evenif the market and economic forces aremaking it difficult for him to do so. It is hisobligation to God that he resists these forcesand struggle and strive (wage Jihad) to fulfillthe above-mentioned commandments, evenif he has to compromise on some profit orput up some extra effort (up to his capacity).For him, profit is only a “means” to keep hisbusiness alive and to satisfy his customeri.e. the “end.”

The wisdom behind the golden rule is thatthe welfare and wellbeing of the customersand the society is far more important thanthe profitability of a single entrepreneur.Yes, by preferring customers over profit, abusiness will reduce its income in the short-term but will surely improve its sustainabilityin the longer run. Besides, a Muslim knowsthat his job is to simply work within theframework of Quranic injunctions and therest will itself follow. The Holy Quranauthorizes this fact in 51:58

[51:58] “Allah is He who isthe provider of all Rizq(Livelihood), the Lord of allPower.”

[2:212] "And Allah provides'Rizq' to whom he wishes withoutany account."

There are some western and far-easternorganizations whose sole purpose is to meetthe needs of the customer and society alone(“end”) by leaving profitability as a “means”for it. Their main focus is to satisfy theircustomers as much as possible in terms of their expectations about the quality of theproduct or service, and they nevercompromise on it. Interestingly enough, such

companies are many times more profitableover other companies who do not have suchintentions 6. The author and researcher JimCollins describes such companies in his best-selling books titled “Built to Last” and “Goodto Great.” Two such companies are Sony andMerck. The founder of the Merck believedthat medicine is for the sick (end) and notfor making money out of it (means). Theauthor states that these beliefs are evenopenly evident in their everyday activitieswithin their companies.

It is a natural law that when “means” arerecognized as “means” and “ends” of humanlife are recognized as “ends”, only then thereal process of socioeconomic, intellectual,and spiritual evolution takes places and takesus to the extremes of our potential.

The following ayat reveals a lot than the

apparent:[26:182] “And weigh with scalestrue and upright”

FULFILLING CONTRACTS,COMMITMENTS, & PROMISES

Whereas promises are verbal commitment,contracts are written. From the ‘NikahNamah’ to a business plan, including anyfinancial agreement, are all different formsof written promises that we make. If welook at it strictly from the business point-

of-view, commitments and promises are adaily routine affair. But how much do wekeep of the promises that we make,promises as seemingly insignificant as: ‘Iwill call you back in 15 minutes?’ To run abusiness successfully, a businessman shouldnot make promises that he cannot keep norbreak any that he has made.

Dr. Stephan R. Covey writes in his book ‘The8 th Habit’ 7 :

“Nothing destroys trust fasterthan making and breaking a

promise. Conversely, nothingbuilds and strengthens trustmore than keeping a promiseyou make.”

This fact is applicable not only in thebusiness environment but also in ourindividual, social and political environments.

The Holy Quran has instructed the Muslimsabout this golden rule at several places:

[17:34] “Allah says, ‘Fulfillyour contracts. Contracts willbe asked about.’”

[16:91] “And the Almightysays, ‘Be true to Allah'scontract when you have agreedto it.’

[5:1] “The Almighty says, ‘Oyou who believe! Fulfill your

contracts.’

[61:2-3] “And the Almightysays, ‘O you who believe! Whydo you say what you do not do?It is deeply abhorrent to Allahthat you say what you do notdo.’”

CONCLUSION

Success and prosperity is the outcome of commitment to certain golden principles of life, and not out of luck and fate—principles

that are readily available to us in the HolyQuran. These principles are independentand universal of any particular professionand primarily aims at building a “whole”man capable of achieving his true potentialin the purpose of his life—either throughsome business setup of his own or throughas an employee. What remains desired isthe practical implementation of theseprinciples in our socio-economic and politicallives.

FOOTNOTES:

The author is an Engineer by profession. Hem a y b e r e a c h e d a [email protected]

This ayat (26:182) “weight with scalestr ue and upright” command us to keepour measur ing instr uments calibratedso that measurement is car r ied outmost accurately. It also commands usto keep all our quality control andquality ass urance procedures andtools fully functional so that defectedcomponents ar e not passed on to thecustomers.

1. From an article published in DAWN Newspaper2.The Toyota Way by Jeffrey K liker p#2233.Ibid p#223 to 2364.The Toyota Way by Jeffrey K liker p#1145.Ibid p#113 - 1275.Built to Last by Jim Collins; page#8, heading:

Myth#36.The 8th Habit by Dr. Stephan R. Covey; p#169


CRITIC Business Management in Quran

Documents

Transcript of CRITIC Business Management in Quran